Belmont Co. Animal Shelter closing doors to public amid travel ban

ST. CLAIRSVILLE, Ohio (WTRF) – Another unfortunate sidelight of the Coronavirus crackdowns.

The Belmont County Animal Shelter is now closed to all visitors. However, employees are still there, caring for all the dogs and cats.

Until recently, prospective adopters were allowed to visit by appointment only—one at a time.

However, following the governor’s ban on non-essential travel, the only pet-shopping you can do is online.

We had a lot of people coming from other states and that. We don’t want to make the problem any worse in the public. You know we need to keep the public safe from the virus and the staff to take care of the animals. So we’re hoping maybe on the 6th the governor will change that but we do, we are taking applications.

Lisa Williams, Belmont County Dog Warden

Lisa says the dogs are all enjoying the warmer weather and having more time and one-on-one care from the staff.